A proposal to allow trapping of a once-endangered species in Ohio is being called premature by researchers and wildlife groups.
The Ohio Department of Natural Resources' "Bobcat Management Plan" recommends a bobcat-trapping season from November through January, beginning this year.
The bobcat was removed from Ohio's Threatened Species List in 2014, and the department says it's confident the population is secure. But opponents argue that it is reckless to establish such a season without biological data and a true understanding of the bobcat population.
A series of public hearings will be held before a final vote on the plan on May 9.